Years ago, Dr. Sophia Yin registered the terror in her patient’s glassy brown eyes, felt his warm body trembling beneath her hand, and made a vow. She would find a way to make vet visits less stressful.
As it turned out, she found hundreds of ways: substitutes for slippery floors and glaring fluorescent lights; gentler handling that didn’t require force; insulation to control sounds and smells…
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Yin has since died, but her legacy lives on in several education and certification programs. The most popular, founded by Dr. Marty Becker, is called Fear Free, and in just two years, it has re-educated hundreds of vets, vet techs, and animal behaviorists.
Last spring, The Pet Doctor in O’Fallon, Missouri, became the world’s first Fear Free–certified practice, training its entire team. One of the Pet Doctor’s vets, Dr. Marcy Hammerle, collaborated with Yin to write behavior management guidelines for the American Animal Hospital Association. Putting Yin’s work into practice, she says, means avoiding old-school practices (three people holding a dog down to trim its nails; cats scruffed to restrain them; plopping a kitten down on an exam table just vacated by a Rottweiler…). No dog’s ever set paw in The Pet Doctor’s cat examination room. And if a Yorkie’s nervous, Hammerle might do her exam with the dog cradled in her person’s arms. “For each pet, we keep an emotional medical record,” she explains. “If this pet likes peanut butter treats, that will be listed, or if they do better with their owner present or away from their owner.”
The goal is to remove as much fear and stress as possible. The result? More eager visits by happier, calmer, and ultimately healthier dogs.
Local veterinary practices and animal hospitals with at least one employee holding certification:
Animal Clinic of Clayton (136 N. Meramec, 314-863-2400)
Animal Medical Center of Mid-America (1201 Macklind, 314-951-1534,)
Banfield Pet Hospital (1036 Woods Mill, 636-527-0581)
Brentwood Animal Hospital (2907 S. Brentwood, 314-962-2900)
Carter Pet Hospital (9925 Highway N, Lake Saint Louis, 636-639-9999)
Cherry Hills Veterinary Hospital (16970 Manchester, Grover, 636-458-3353)
Columbia Animal Hospital (201 McCrosky Professional Park, Columbia, Illinois, 618-281-7161)
Elm Point Animal Hospital (3250 Elm Point Industrial, St. Charles)
Florissant Animal Hospital (605 N. Highway 67,314-921-0500)
Hillside Animal Hospital (5325 Manchester, 314-645-2141)
Hawthorne Animal Hospital (5 Cougar, Glen Carbon, 618-288-3971)
Horseshoe Lake Animal Hospital (5230 Horseshoe Lake, Collinsville, 618-2344-7949)
Kirkwood Animal Hospital (11114 Manchester, 314-965-2660,)
Olde Towne Fenton Veterinary Hospital (540 Gravois, 636-343-6202)
The Pet Doctor (2301 Technology, O’Fallon, Missouri, 636-561-9122)
Spencer Creek Animal Hospital (520 Jungermann, St. Peters, 636-447-3727)
Sulphur Springs Veterinary Clinic (621 Big Bend, 636-394-3227)
VetCor–Edwardsville Pet Hospital (423 S. Buchanan, Edwardsville, 618-656-7656)
Veterinary Care Center (16830 Chesterfield Airport, 636-537-9960,)
Veterinary Specialty Services (1021 Howard George,636-227-9400)
Webster Groves Animal Hospital (8028 Big Bend, 314-968-4310)
